Paying It Forward 2010
It’s that time of year again. My annual PAYING IT FORWARD week. This week I will be sharing the information I received at the Rutgers One on One Mentoring Conference. I hope you find it helpful!
*remember to always follow submission guidelines. Some editors and agents are only taking unsolicited subs from conference attendees(and they do check).
Kaylan Adair, Associate Editor, Candlewick Press. Kaylan works on PBs. MG, andYA novels, but is especially interested in adding more MG and YA fiction to her list. She is looking for stories that blend strong, literary writing with compelling and commercially appealing plotlines. Among the books she’s edited are: And Then Comes Halloween by Tom Brenner, illustrated by Holly Meade (PB), Down Sand Mountain by Steve Watkins (MG), and Swim the Fly by Don Calame (YA). She is currently working with each of these authors on their second books and would love to begin long-term working relationships with promising new authors. Will accept conference subs for 3 months after the conference.
Eve Adler, Associate Editor, Henry Holt Books for Young Readers. : Eve works on a variety of formats from baby to YA, and is looking for manuscripts for all ages: PBs, MG, and YA. Most recently, she edited Escape by Night: A Civil War Adventure by Lauren Myers and Amy June Bates, and Dead Lines by Jennifer Doktorski. She enjoys manuscripts with a fresh voice and exceptional writing; for MG and YA projects, she likes contemporary, edgy, historical, coming-of-age, humorous stories, and for PBs. She‘s most interested in texts that have a curriculum tie-in or educational hook. Prior to joining Holt, Eve worked in the adult imprint of G.P. Putnam’s Sons, which is part of the Penguin Group. Before entering the publishing world, Eve lived in France, Thailand, and Germany. Will accept subs from conference.
Robert Agis, Associate Editor, Sterling Publishing Co., Inc. Robert Agis works on songbooks, PBs, joke books, sticker books, activity books, and puzzle and game books. He is interested in acquiring titles with strong backlist potential, and /or titles that lend themselves to new media formats (audio, video, web apps, etc.).Additional submission guidelines are available at: http://www.sterlingpublishing.com/sterling/author-guidelines. He worked with his editorial department on the Peter Yarow Songbook series, and is the editor of the second of Lisa Loeb’s songbooks. Robert is also the creative force behind Listening Along Story, a website featuring free audiobook downloads of select Sterling PB titles. Will accept submissions for two months after the conference.
Jennifer Arena, Executive Editor, Random House Children’s. Jennifer is the line manager of the Stepping Stones line of early chapter books, which include the Junie B. Jones and Magic Tree House series. She is looking specifically for early chapter books with strong plots and interesting characters of around 8,000 to 11,000 words, both stand-alone titles and series, as well as easy-to-reads. Recent titles she has edited for the Stepping Stones series, include Marion Dane Bauer’s The Very Little Princess, Ilene Cooper’s Look at Lucy, David Kelly’s Ballpark Mysteries, and Lynne Jonell’s Hamster Magic. Jennifer is happy to accept submissions after the conference.
Elizabeth Bewley, Editor, Poppy/Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. Elizabeth acquires fiction and nonfiction for teen readers. She is always on the hunt for smart books that will appeal to a broad readership, and is particularly interested in acquiring new young woman’s fiction for the Poppy imprint. Elizabeth edits Cecily von Ziegesar’s bestselling It Girl series and Joanna Philbin’s The Daughters series. Her upcoming titles include The Magnolia League by NY Times bestselling novelist Katie Crouch, We All Fall Down by NY Times bestselling author Nic Sheff, and Bunheads by former NY City Ballet member Sophia Flack. Elizabeth enjoys fast-paced fiction that contains a healthy dose of social commentary, funny projects that advantage of pop culture phenomena, and insightful nonfiction that speaks directly to teen readers. Elizabeth held editorial positions at St. Martin’s press, ReganBooks/HarperCollins, and Intervisual Books before joining Little, Brown in the fall of 2008.
Erin Blak, Assistant Editor, Scholastic Press. Erin works mainly on MG, and YA novels in the Scholastic Press and PUSH imprints at Scholastic. She has assisted editing such books as Greeting from the 50 States by Sheila Keenan and Countdown by Deborah Wiles, as well as the upcoming Prom and Prejudice by Elizabeth Eulberg and Frontier Magic Book 2 by Patricia C. Wrede. Open to books for all age ranges. Erin is especially interested in fun, quirky MG, and YA fiction with strong protagonists; and good fantasy, science fiction, and steampunk novels. She is probably not the best match for rhyming PBs or most paranormal romance.
Anna K. Bloom, Assistant Editor, Scholastic Trade Paperbacks. While open to material for all ages, Anna works primarily on commercial chapter book and MG series fiction. Anna worked on the MG fantasy Cat Magic and its sequels Dog Magic, Hamster Magic, and Rabbit Magic, as well as the Magic Pony chapter book series. In addition, she edited the realistic fiction novel Winner Takes All, which is part of Scholastic’s Candy Apple line of books for tween girls. She also provides support for the Rainbow Magic Fairy series. Anna is a fan of light fantasy and fast-paced fiction, as well as anything that makes her laugh or sends chills up her spine. She is probably not the right fit for PBs or nonfiction. Will accept conference submissions.
Jennifer Bonnell, Executive Editor, Puffin Books, Penguin Young Readers Group. Jennifer works on MG, and YA fiction and non-fiction and has edited Three Cups of Tea: Young Readers Edition; Yours truly, Lucy B. Parker series and Geek Charming by Robin Palmer; Faithful by Janet Fox, Kieran Scott’s Geek Magnet; Let it Snow by John Green, Laura Myracle and Maureen Johnson; Puffin Graphics graphic novel adaptations of the classics. She’s looking for books that would be a good fit in original paperback—specifically books with great hooks and concepts and very strong voices, and would love to find a killer MG novel for guys. She loves humor, romance, witty voices, very commercial historical fiction, some dystopian fiction (very much grounded in reality, please) and does not work on high fantasy or hard sci-fi.
Marilyn Brigham, Editor, Marshall Cavendish Children’s Books. Marilyn has been working at Marshall Cavendish for the past 6 years, where she edits everything from board books through YA. Her recent titles include Hero Dad, a PB in which a boy compares his soldier dad to a superhero; A Field Guide to Aliens, a MG book of alien profiles; the Ogg and Bob chapter book series, which features two cavemen and their pet mammoth; and Soccerland, a YA girls’ sport novel. Marilyn loves edgy contemporary fiction, boy book, sports books, books with multicultural themes, chick lit, and humor. She would love to sign up more fiction for MG and YA and quirky PBs. She’s not the best match for historical fiction, nonfiction, high fantasy, or concept books. Marilyn recently wrote a board book concept that Marshall Cavendish will be publishing. Will only personally respond to subs received in the first three months. Manuscripts sent after three months will go into Marshall Cavendish’s regular submissions pile and may not receive a response.
Dana Carey, Editorial Assistant Wendy Lamb Books, Random House. Dana Carey works on a variety of books from young readers to MG to YA. Wendy Lamb Books publishes authors with a distinct voice and well-developed stories; themes include historical fiction, science fiction, thrillers, and “boy books.” Some of WLB’s authors include Patricia Reilly Giff, Graham Salisbury, Dana Reinhardt, Gary Paulsen, Eoin McNamee, Arthur Slade, Christopher Paul Curtis, Beth Ann Bauman, Martha Jocelyn, Karen Day, and Suzanne LeFleur. Dana Carey is probably not the best match for PBs or board books. She was an intern with WLB when Rebecca Stead’s When You Reach Me (won the Newbery Award last year). She will complete her MS in Publishing from NYU in December. Dana is happy to accept submissions after the conference.
Karen Chaplin, Editor, Puffin/Speak Books, Penguin Young Readers Group. Karen acquires MG and YA fiction. Some of the projects she has edited include the Students Across the Seven Seas series, Paris Pan Takes the Dare by Cynthea Liu, Zombie Queen of Newbury High by Amanda Ashby, Exclusively Chloe by J. A. Yang, and the Specialists series by Shannon Greenland. Karen is looking for fun, original series fiction as well as stand-alone fiction for the MG and YA markets. While science fiction/fantasy is not her cup of tea, the genres she is looking for include chick lit, fun action/adventure series (boy and girl), mysteries, horror/paranormal, romance, stories with strong female characters (including topics such as sisters and friendships). Anything boy-centric, and commercial literary and edgy fiction. She is open to receiving submissions from conference attendees.
Denise Cronin has been happily working in children’s book publishing for over 30 years. She started at Dial Books for Young Readers, where she worked in various positions before moving to Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers as Art Director in 1981. After Knopf, she joined Viking Children’s Books as Art Director in 1995, and was made Vice President in 2008. Throughout the years, she has had the pleasure of working with many talented artists, writers, designers, and editors. Area of interest range from board books to illustrated MG novels.
Come back tomorrow for more info. By the way, I’d love for you to follow me on twitter (writergirlrowan). At the end of the Pay It Forward series of posts I will award a sparkling prize to one of my new followers
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